Citibank implements new policy requirements for partnering gun dealers

Citi announces new policies for gun-selling clients. (Photo: Citi/Facebook)

Citibank announced this week it will cut ties with partnering businesses unwilling to adopt new policies for selling firearms.

Dealers large and small wishing to do business with Citi must place age restrictions on gun sales, ban bump stocks and high capacity magazines and refuse to complete transactions when buyers fail background checks, Executive Vice President Ed Skylar, of Citi’s Global Public Affairs, said Thursday.

“It is not centered on an ideological mission to rid the world of firearms. That is not what we seek,” he said in a blog post on the company’s website. “There are millions of Americans who use firearms for recreational and other legitimate purposes, and we respect their Constitutional right to do so. But we want to do our part as a company to prevent firearms from getting into the wrong hands.”

It’s unclear which business and gun makers will be impacted by the new policies, but Skylar said Citi will perform “its due diligence in initiating those conversations.”

Citibank’s new policies follow a corporate backlash against perceived lax gun laws in the wake of the Valentine’s Day shooting in Parkland, Florida. Leadership at Dick’s Sporting Goods, Walmart, L.L. Bean and Kroger all adopted stricter gun sales policies — similar to Citi’s new requirements — as a response to inaction on Capitol Hill.

“We know that the actions we are taking today will invite passion on both sides,” Skylar said. “We don’t have the perfect solution but we have come to the conclusion that we must do our part to keep guns out of the hands of those who wish to do harm. And we hope our actions help achieve that vital goal.”

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